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4994064.1
IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS CUYAHOGA COUNTY, OHIO
PROBATE DIVISION
ARTHUR P. DUECK, et al.,
Plaintiffs,
vs.
THE CLIFTON CLUB COMPANY,
Defendant.
) CASE NO. 2012ADV179424)) JUDGE ANTHONY J. RUSSO)) PLAINTIFFS' BRIEF IN OPPOSITION ) TO DEFENDANT'S MOTION TO ) DISMISS)) (Oral Hearing Requested)
I. INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY OF ARGUMENT
This case is about The Clifton Club Company's attempts to effectively strip Clifton Park
homeowners of their right of private access and enjoyment of Clifton Beach, essentially
converting private beach property into quasi-public property. The dispute in this case is over the
interpretation of a deed of trust granting beneficiaries the "sole use and benefit of' certain
property in the Clifton Park Allotment, including access to and enjoyment of Clifton Beach. The
language of the deed of trust at issue is unambiguous and undisputed. Thus, the simple issue
presented here is whether non-beneficiaries under a trust have the same rights to use certain
property as do beneficiaries, where the trust specifically and exclusively grants those rights only
to beneficiaries.
Plaintiffs, Arthur P. Dueck, Todd Gilmore, Nancy Binder and William R. Keller
("Plaintiffs") brought this action seeking a declaration from the Court stating that members of
Defendant The Clifton Club Company ("Defendant" or the "Club") have no legal right to use
property under a deed of trust, including Clifton Beach, because Club members are not
beneficiaries under that deed of trust. Plaintiffs filed a straightforward six-page, one count
Complaint asking the Court to resolve this issue. Rather than answer the Complaint and deal
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with the simple issue presented, the Club chose to file a sixteen- page motion to dismiss and
conspicuously dodge the merits of the dispute.
In a feeble attempt to unnecessarily complicate the issue and avoid resolving the dispute,
the Club raises multiple procedural arguments that misconstrue the Complaint and the relief
sought by Plaintiffs. The Club argues that Plaintiffs lack standing because (1) they are not
parties to the Club's deed that granted the Club four sublots in Clifton Park, (2) they allegedly
have no compensable injury, and (3) there allegedly is no justiciable controversy requiring speedy
relief. See Defendant's Mtn. at pp. 5-7.1 Here, the Club's deed is not at issue; Plaintiffs seek
interpretation of the Clifton Park Trust, not the deed. Because Plaintiffs are beneficiaries under
the Clifton Park Trust, they have standing. Further, Plaintiffs have sufficiently pled a
compensable injury and controversy requiring speedy relief. Alternatively, the Club argues that
the action is barred because Plaintiffs have not joined the "titled-owners of Clifton Beach, the
Park Trustees, and their fellow Clifton Park lot owners". See id. at p. 2. None of the individuals
to which the Club refers are necessary parties to this action. Thus, dismissal is not warranted
under Civ.R. 12(B)(7), Civ.R. 19, or R.C. 2721.12.2
II. STATEMENT OF FACTS
Plaintiffs are sublot owners of real property located within the allotment of Clifton Park
in the City of Lakewood. Plaintiffs and other Clifton Park sublot owners who also own
1"Defendant's Mtn." refers to the "Brief in Support of Motion to Dismiss of The Clifton ClubCompany."2If the Court determines that there are individuals other than Plaintiffs and the Club that are necessary parties to this action, dismissal still is unwarranted. Rather, the appropriate remedy is to permit Plaintiffs to add those parties. See State ex. Rei. Bush v. Spurlock, 42 Ohio St.3d 77,81, 537 N.E.2d 641 (1989) (rejecting outright dismissal; "Ohio courts have eschewed the harsh result of dismissing an action because an indispensable party was not joined, electing instead to order that the party be joined"). Likewise, if the Court finds that Plaintiffs have not sufficiently pled they have standing, Plaintiffs request the Court grant them leave to amend their Complaint.
2
residences in Clifton Park are beneficiaries in common under a Deed of Trust dated March 25,
1912 (the "Clifton Park Trust").3 It is undisputed that under the Clifton Park Trust, the Clifton
Park Land & Improvement Company ("CPLIC") conveyed to five trustees ("Clifton Park
Trustees") real property located in Clifton Park, including a beach property in the northwest
comer of the Clifton Park Allotment (referred to as "Clifton Beach") to hold ''for the sole use
and benefit of all the owners of sub lots, or parts of lots, in the Clifton Park Allotment ..."
See Clifton Park Trust (emphasis added); Compl. at ¶ 9; Defendant's Mtn. at p. 1. The Clifton
Park Trust provides that the "Trustees shall hold title to and preserve all the land deeded to them
for the common use of all the lot owners in the Clifton Park allotment and their successors in
title, and members of their households." See Clifton Park Trust; Compl. at ¶ 10. Further, under
the Clifton Park Trust, no part of the property held for the benefit of persons owning sublots
"shall be sold, conveyed or dedicated to public use without the unanimous consent of all the lot
owners in said allotment." See Clifton Park Trust; Compl. at ¶11.
Defendant was incorporated in 1902 to operate as a social club in Clifton Park. On July
1, 1912, CPLIC conveyed four sublots in Clifton Park to the Club (the "Club Deed").4 See
Compl. at ¶ 5. The Club Deed contains the same covenants and restrictions as the deeds to the
other sublots, including provisions not to use the premises for any business purpose whatsoever
or for any other purpose other than a private residence or social club. See Club Deed; Compl. at
¶ 6. Membership in the Club was "not confined to residents of Clifton Park[;]" rather, "a large
number belonging thereto and patronizing the same are not residents." Wallace v. Clifton Park
Land Co., 92 Ohio St. 349, *10, 110 N.E. 940 (1915); Defendant's Mtn. at p. 1.
3 A copy of the Clifton Park Trust is attached to the Complaint as Exhibit A.4 A copy of the Club Deed is attached to the Complaint as Exhibit B.
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A. Residential-Use And Other Restrictive Covenants Imposed Upon Sublots In The Clifton Park Allotment.
All of the properties of Clifton Park are part of an early unique planned community and
share the same deed restrictions that were put in place for the benefit of all the eventual lot
owners to insure that the peaceful park-like community would remain intact for residents to enjoy.
From the time CPLIC first established the Clifton Park Allotment in 1899, and continuing to the
present time, sublots in the Allotment (except the four sublots where the Club is situated), have
been burdened with restrictions that, among other things, limit the property to single-family
residential use. Wallace, 92 Ohio St. at 349,*10.5 The Club's "deed contained substantially the
same restrictions as in all other deeds, save and excepting that the lots should not be used for any
other purpose than that of private residence or social club." Id. Indeed, CPLIC conditioned the
sale of its sublots upon the purchaser's accepting restrictions designed to maintain the residential
scheme of the Clifton Park Allotment. The Clifton Trust property, including Clifton Beach, was
set aside with a "general and uniform plan of restricting the allotment to resident purposes [that]
might contribute to a readier sale of the lots" and "to guarantee to the purchasers a quiet
residence locality". Id. at 359.
B. Clifton Beach Access Is An Informal Courtesy That Has Been Extended To The Club's Members In The Past.
Over the years, the Club's members have been allowed access to Clifton Beach only as a
courtesy extended by Clifton Park sublot owners and the Clifton Park Trustees. The informal
5 In March, 1912, when CPLIC conveyed ownership of Clifton Beach and other Clifton Park property to the Clifton Part Trustees under the Clifton Park Trust, the Club was leasing its property from CPLIC. Accordingly, when CPLIC conveyed four sublots to the Club under the Club Deed in July, 1912, Clifton Beach and other Clifton Park property had already been committed to the "sole use and benefit" of sublot owners whose deeds contained the restrictive "covenants and agreements" limiting use of their property to single-family residences.
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practice of allowing Club members to access Clifton Beach first came about after the Club's
original facility was razed by a fire in January 1942. In the aftermath of the fire, the Club was
struggling financially. Club members were allowed to use the beach house as a temporary
meeting location and allowed access to Clifton Beach, informally, as an act of generosity by
homeowners and the Clifton Park Trustees to help the Club to remain viable. The fact that the
Club's members were extended that courtesy in the past does not mean they are entitled to
continue to use Clifton Beach property held in trust "for the sole use and benefit of all the owners
of sub lots, or parts of lots, in the Clifton Park allotment ..." See Clifton Park Trust; Compl. at ¶
9; Defendant's Mtn. at p. 1.
C. The Dispute Over Access To Clifton Beach.
In recent years, the Club and its members have abused the courtesy of access to Clifton
Beach previously extended by Clifton Park sublot owners and the Clifton Park Trustees. Use of
Clifton Beach by Club members and their guests has increased exponentially. In fact, today
there are approximately 230 Club members, who do not own sublots or residences in Clifton
Park. See Compl. at ¶ 14. Because these Club members do not own sublots or residences in
Clifton Park, they are not beneficiaries under the Clifton Park Trust. Accordingly, these Club
members do not have any legal right to use property granted under the Clifton Park Trust,
including Clifton Beach. The Club however, has taken the position that its members have rights
to use Clifton Beach that are equal to the rights granted to Plaintiffs and other sublot owners as
Clifton Park Trust beneficiaries. This is the dispute.
Clifton Park residential sublot owners have been driven off of Clifton Beach by droves of
non-resident Club members, their families and guests who gain access through memberships sold
by the Club. The Club's use, and abuse, of Clifton Beach has also greatly increased the
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operating costs of maintaining the property. For example, trash cans overflowed onto the
sidewalks increasing cleanup costs. The cost of retaining an additional security guard was
recently incurred after homeowners complained the present staff was not capable of controlling
crowds of unruly Club members and their guests.
Enjoyment of Clifton Beach by the real, and only, beneficiaries of the Clifton Park Trust
has been seriously compromised. Plaintiffs are among the many homeowners who want their
beach property to be returned to the neighborhood gathering place it once was, and rightfully
should be. Utilization of Clifton Beach by the 230 Club members ballooned as the Club has
shifted their marketing from a social club to a club with private beach access. Clifton Beach is
simply too small to accommodate the resident beneficiaries of the Clifton Park Trust and the
large number of Club members using Clifton Beach.
III. LAW AND ARGUMENT
A. Standard For Relief Under Civil Rule 12( B )(6).
In considering a Civ.R. 12(B)(6) motion to dismiss, the Court must (1) accept as true all
material allegations in the Complaint, (2) construe all reasonable inferences in Plaintiffs' favor,
and (3) construe the Complaint in the light most favorable to Plaintiffs. Moore v. City of
Middletown, 2012-0hio-3897, ¶ 4; Mitchell v. Lawson Milk Co., 40 Ohio St.3d 190, 192, 532
N.E.2d 753 (1988). "Moreover, the motion to dismiss is viewed with disfavor and should rarely
be granted." Slife v. Kundtz Prop., Inc., 40 Ohio App.2d. 179, 182, 318 N.E.2d 557 (8th Dist.
1974). The Club's motion is rife with irrelevant argument but sparse on supporting facts and
legal authority. Under the deferential standard of review afforded to Plaintiffs, the motion to
dismiss should be denied.
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B. The Motion To Dismiss Should Be Denied Because Plaintiffs Have Standing.
1. As Beneficiaries In Common Under The Clifton Park Trust, Plaintiffs Have Standing To Seek Declaratory Relief Interpreting That Trust.
Plaintiffs have standing to seek declaratory relief interpreting the Clifton Park Trust
because Plaintiffs are beneficiaries in common under the Clifton Park Trust. Ohio Revised Code
2721.03 permits any person interested under a deed of trust to seek a declaratory judgment
interpreting the deed:
[A]ny person interested under a deed, will, written contract, or other writing constituting a contract ... may have determined any question of construction or validity arising under the instrument, ... [or] contract ... and obtain a declaration of rights, status, or other legal relations under it. (Emphasis added).
Further, "R.C. 2721.05 explicitly provides a right of action for a trust beneficiary seeking
a declaration concerning the interpretation of a trust provision." Arnott v. Arnott, 190 Ohio
App.3d 493, 2010-0hio-5392, 942 N.E.2d 1124, ¶ 30 (4th Dist). R.C. 2721.05 permits
declaratory judgment actions related to questions arising in the "administration of a trust":
Any person interested as or through an executor, administrator, trustee, guardian, or other fiduciary, creditor, devisee, legatee, heir, next of kin, or cestui que trust, in the administration of a trust, ... may have a declaration of rights or legal relations in respect thereto in any of the following cases:
(A) To ascertain any class of creditors, devisees, legatees, heirs, next of kin, or others;
(B) To direct the executors, administrators, trustees, or other fiduciaries to do or abstain from doing any particular act in their fiduciary capacity;
(C) To determine any question arising in the administration of the estate or trust, including questions of construction of wills and other writings. (Emphasis added).
Under the Clifton Park Trust, CPLIC conveyed to the Clifton Park Trustees real property
located in Clifton Park, including Clifton Beach, to hold "for the sole use and benefit of all the
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owners of sub lots, or parts of lots, in the Clifton Park allotment ..." See Clifton Park Trust
Compl. at ¶ 9; Defendant's Mtn. at p. 1. Plaintiffs are owners of sublots in the Clifton Park
Allotment. Compl. at ¶ 1. These facts are undisputed. Plaintiffs are beneficiaries in common
under the Clifton Park Trust. Indeed, as owners of sublots in the Clifton Park Allotment,
Plaintiffs are "person[s] interested under [the Clifton Park Trust.]" R.C. 2721.03. As
beneficiaries in common of the Clifton Park Trust, Plaintiffs are also "interested" persons under
R.C. 2721.05 and can properly seek declaratory relief to "determine any question arising in the
administration" of the Clifton Park Trust. R.C. 2721.05. Plaintiffs seek declaratory relief
interpreting the Clifton Park Trust. Compl. at p. 5. Specifically, Plaintiffs seek a judgment
declaring that Club members, who are not owners of sublots in Clifton Park, are not beneficiaries
under the Clifton Park Trust, and therefore have no legal right to use the Trust property,
including Clifton Beach. Id. It is axiomatic that as beneficiaries of the Clifton Park Trust,
Plaintiffs have standing to seek declaratory relief interpreting the Clifton Park Trust.
Further, Plaintiffs have standing to seek declaratory relief through various restrictive
covenants that benefit their property.6 "An action for a declaratory judgment is appropriate to
determine an actual controversy regarding the validity of restrictive covenants or other
provisions contained in a deed, as well as their enforceability, and construction or effect." 26
Buchwalter, Dvorske, Kennel, Corpus Juris Secundum, 77 (2012); 35 Farrell, Ohio
Jurisprudence, Third Edition, 33 (3d Ed.2012); Slife, 40 Ohio App.2d at 179 (reversing dismissal
6 Indeed, the Supreme Court of Ohio determined that homeowners in the Clifton Park Allotment have the right to enforce restrictions imposed upon lots within the allotment that are included in the deeds from the original grantors. Wallace, 92 Ohio St. at 359 (dispute involved homeowners of Clifton Park and developer CPLIC; Court found "purchasers and present owners of any of these lots have the right to enforce the restrictions imposed upon these lots in the deeds from the original proprietors").
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of declaratory judgment action to determine the validity of restrictions on the use of land in a
deed). "Any person having an interest under a writing constituting a contract, such as a
restrictive covenant, may seek declaratory relief concerning any question of construction arising
under the instrument." 26 Buchwalter, Dvorske, Kennel, Corpus Juris Secundum, 77 (2012).
Numerous courts have held that any owner of property in a general scheme of
development, such as Plaintiffs who own property in the Clifton Park Allotment, may bring a
declaratory judgment action to enforce restrictive covenants benefitting their land. See Meisse v.
Family Recreation Club, 2nd Dist. No. 97-CA-54, 1998 Ohio App. LEXIS 619 (Feb. 20, 1998)
(subdivision landowners had standing to enforce restrictive covenants in declaratory judg1nent
action); Jubb v. Letterle, 185 W.Va. 239,242,406 S.E.2d 465 (1991) (right of owner of each lot
to enforce residential use restrictive covenant against any other owner of lot in subdivision is a
"substantial and valuable right"); Turner v. Brocato, 206 Md. 336, 111 A.2d 855 (1955)
(ordering declaratory relief in suit by owners of lots in development subject to restrictions
against business use for a declaration that defendants' lot was part of the development and
therefore similarly restricted, although conveyed by the developer and by his grantee to
defendants without restrictions). Here, in addition to being beneficiaries in common under the
Clifton Park Trust, Plaintiffs have standing to seek declaratory relief based upon restrictive
covenants in their respective homeowner deeds.
2. The Club Misconstrues The Complaint As Seeking Reformation Of The Club Deed.
By misconstruing the Complaint as seeking to reform the Club Deed, the Club diverts
attention from the real issue. Defendant's Mtn. at p. 5 ("Plaintiffs impermissibly seek to reform
the terms of the CPLIC-Clifton Club Deed"). The Club's assertions that Plaintiffs are attempting
to "reform" or "void" portions of the Club Deed are patently false. Plaintiffs do not claim to be
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parties to or in privity with parties to the Club Deed. That Plaintiffs are not parties to the Club
Deed is irrelevant, because Plaintiffs do not seek reformation of the Club Deed. Instead,
Plaintiffs seek to enforce restrictive covenants contained in their own residential deeds-in
tandem with their rights as beneficiaries under the Clifton Park Trust. Contrary to the Club's
claim, this is a case "where a lot owner subject to deed restrictions sues to enforce like
restrictions imposed upon other lots by a common grantor." Defendant's Mtn. at p. 6 fn. 2
(internal quotation omitted). The Club's argument that Plaintiffs lack standing because they are
not parties to the Club Deed is futile.
3. There Is A Real And Justiciable Controversy Requiring Speedy Relief.
To be entitled to declaratory relief, a plaintiff must demonstrate that "a real controversy
between adverse parties exists which is justiciable in character, and that speedy relief is
necessary to the preservation of rights which may be otherwise impaired or lost." Herrick
v. Kosydar, 44 Ohio St.2d 128, 130, 339 N.E.2d 626 (1975) (affirming denial of motion to
dismiss); see 35 Farrell, Ohio Jurisprudence, Third Edition, 7 (3d Ed.2012). "A real, justiciable
controversy is a genuine dispute between parties having adverse legal interests of sufficient
immediacy and reality to warrant the issuance of a declaratory judgment." Reinbolt v. Nat!. Fire
Ins. Co. of Hartford, 158 Ohio App.3d 453, 2004-0hio-4845, 816 N.E.2d 1083, ¶ 13 (6th Dist.)
(Internal quotation and citation omitted). "Essentially, courts have the power to resolve present
disputes and controversies, but do not have authority to issue advisory opinions to prevent future
disputes." Jd. Even where a controversy is based on "future events" (e.g. tax liability
"dependent upon whether the IRS conducts an audit and rules unfavorably"), the Eighth District
Court of Appeals has held that the "controversy is not so speculative as to deny declaratory
relief." See Halley v. Ohio Co., 107 Ohio App.3d 518, 524, 669 N.E.2d 70 (8th Dist. 1995).
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Accordingly, a court may dismiss a declaratory judgment action "only when: (1) no real
controversy or justiciable issue exists between the parties, or (2) the declaratory judgment will
not terminate the uncertainty or controversy." See e.g., Matthews v. D 'Amore, 1Oth Dist. No.
05AP-1318, 2006-0hio-5745, 2006 Ohio App. LEXIS 5704, ¶ 53 (plaintiffs alleged they owned
membership units in an entity and that defendants did not own or acquire any membership
interest in the entity; because the court found "a justiciable controversy exists between the parties
and that declaratory judgment will terminate the controversy" and affirmed the denial of
defendant's motion to dismiss).7
Here, there is a serious, actual and present controversy over the interpretation of the
Clifton Park Trust with respect to the right to use Clifton Beach. Declaratory relief is necessary
to preserve Plaintiffs' and other sublot owners' property rights. This is not a situation involving
a hypothetical, speculative or future dispute. Plaintiffs' rights under the Clifton Park Trust are
currently being impaired. Speedy relief is needed to preserve Plaintiffs' rights under the Clifton
Park Trust and prevent further impairment or loss of these rights. Thus, declaratory judgment by
the Court clarifying that Club members have no legal right to use Clifton Beach because they are
not beneficiaries under the Clifton Park Trust, will terminate the present controversy.
7 The Club only cites Fairview Gen. Hosp. v. Fletcher, 63 Ohio St.3d 146, 586 N.E.2d 80 (1992) as support for its assertion that this case does not present a controversy requiring "speedy relief." Defendant's Mtn. at p. 7. But Fairview is distinguishable and does not apply here. The Fairview Court applied the principle that "absent a constitutional challenge, declaratory relief is unnecessary to the preservation of a plaintiffs statutory right when the Ohio legislature has provided a quasi-judicial administrative appeal of administrative decisions[.]" Id. at 150. In doing so, the Court held that "[s]ince there was no constitutional claims, speedy relief in the form of a declaratory judgment was not required to protect [plaintiffs] statutory rights." !d. Here, Plaintiffs are not seeking to protect statutory rights under an administrative statute. Fairview is irrelevant to the issue before this Court.
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4. Plaintiffs Suffer A "Distinct And Palpable" Injury.
The Club further seeks to avoid the merits of the case by arguing the Plaintiffs have no
injury. Contrary to the Club's assertion, Plaintiffs have sufficiently alleged an injury. See
Compl. at ¶¶ 14-16. As stated above, the Club's use, and abuse, of Clifton Beach has harmed
and interfered with Plaintiffs' and other sublot owners' exclusive right to use and enjoy Clifton
Beach. As a result of the Club's expanding membership, the operating costs of maintaining the
property have increased. Clifton Beach is over-populated. Plaintiffs' and other sublot owners'
exclusive right to use Clifton Beach is severely limited due to the Club's increasing membership.
Plaintiffs' and other sublot owners exclusive right to use Clifton Beach is severely limited due to
the Club's membership and increasing use of the beach.
Further, the Club takes the position that all Club members have unlimited access to
Clifton Beach. This would allow the Club to sell unlimited beach memberships making the
beach a public property. In reference to the beach area, the Clifton Park Trust states: "No part of
said land shall be sold, conveyed or dedicated to public use without the unanimous consent of all
lot owners in said allotment." The introduction of approximately 230 members to the Club,
without future limitation, has never been voted upon by the sublot owners. Yet, the Club alleges
their members' rights are equal to the rights of resident sublot owners of Clifton Park. Here,
Plaintiffs have suffered and continue to suffer as a result of the Club and its members' use and
abuse of Clifton Beach. Plaintiffs' and other sublot owners' sole and exclusive property rights in
Clifton Beach have and continue to be diluted and prejudiced on a daily basis. The Club's
usurpation and unlawful interference with Plaintiffs' and other sublot owners' exclusive right to
use and enjoy Clifton Beach is an eminent, "distinct and palpable" injury, properly presented for
a declaratory judgment in Plaintiffs' favor.
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The Club's reliance on Aarti Hospitality, LLC. v. Grove City, 486 F.Supp.2d 696,
(S.D.Ohio 2007) is misplaced and unavailing. In Aarti, a group of corporate entities doing
business as hotels and lodging establishments in and around Grove City, sought a declaratory
judgment that the city's amendment to an ordinance was void. Id. at 697. The ordinance
expanded the boundaries of a community reinvestment area, which allowed defendant corporation
to enjoy tax abatements related to the construction of a new hotel and a new restaurant. Id.
Plaintiffs asserted that they were at a "competitive disadvantage" because they were unable to
take advantage of the abatement unless they undertook remodeling or constructed new
improvements on their properties. Id. The court found that plaintiffs' alleged injury was
"speculation" based on a "hypothetical scenario." Id. at 703. Because the "mere allegation of
increased competition did not constitute the adverse effect on personal pecuniary, or property
rights needed to confer sufficient standing[,]" the court held that plaintiffs lacked standing. Id. at
702. In contrast, here, Plaintiffs' injury is not based on speculation or a hypothetical scenario.
Rather, Plaintiffs' exclusive rights to use Clifton Beach under the Clifton Park Trust are
currently being adversely affected. This dispute is not about a future competitive business
advantage; it is about the present impairment of Plaintiffs' property rights. Therefore, dismissal
is not warranted under Civ.R. 12(B)(6) and Plaintiffs' claim should be decided on its merits.
C. The Motion To Dismiss Should Be Denied Because Plaintiffs And The Club Are The Only Necessary Parties To This Action.
The Club argues, in the alternative, that this action is barred because Plaintiffs have not
joined the "titled-owners of Clifton Beach, the Park Trustees, and their fellow Clifton Park lot
owners[.]" Defendant's Mtn. at p. 2. Civil Rule 19 regarding joinder of parties needed for just
adjudication states, in part:
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A person who is subject to service of process shall be joined as a party in the action if (1) in his absence complete relief cannot be accorded among those already parties, or (2) he claims an interest relating to the subject of the action and is so situated that the disposition of the action in his absence may (a) as a practical matter impair or impede his ability to protect that interest or (b) leaveany of the persons already parties subject to a substantial risk of incurring double,multiple, or otherwise inconsistent obligations by reason of his claimed interest, or (3) he has an interest relating to the subject of the action as an assignor, assignee, subroger, or subrogee. (Emphasis added).
Here, neither the Clifton Park Trustees, nor other Clifton Park sublot owners are
indispensible parties needed for just adjudication because a declaratory judgment will either (1)
enhance their position if Plaintiffs are successful or (2) leave them in their present position
maintaining status quo. There is no danger that disposition of this action—without Clifton Park
Trustees and other Clifton Park sublot owners joined as parties—will "as a practical matter
impair or impede [their] ability to protect" any interest granted to them under the Clifton Park
Trust. Civ.R. 19.8 Unlike the cases cited in the Club's Motion, Plaintiffs are not seeking to alter
the Clifton Park Trust in any way that would potentially damage any absent beneficiary's interest
in the Clifton Park Trust. Moreover, the Trustees have no interest that needs to be protected.
The Clifton Park Trustees have an obligation to administer the Clifton Park Trust in accordance
with its terms. If there is a dispute among beneficiaries of a trust as to the terms of a trust, the
trustees cannot resolve that dispute. If a trustee picks sides, it risks breaching its fiduciary duty.
Rather, a trustee should stand aside and allow the Court to determine the rights of the Plaintiffs
and the Club and abide by the Court's ruling. Accordingly, the Clifton Park Trustees and other
Clifton Park sublot owners are not required to be parties to this action.9
8 If Plaintiffs are successful in this action, the only individuals that could be adversely affected are the approximately 230 Club members. It is ironic that the Club does not suggest that those members are interested, necessary and indispensible parties to this action.9 See Wesson v. Crain, 165 F.2d 6, 9 (8th Cir. 1948) (refusing to force absent beneficiaries to join plaintiff beneficiaries' suit to remove a trustee); Rippey v. Denver US. Natl. Bank, 260 F.Supp.
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None of the cases the Club cites require that the Clifton Park Trustees or other Clifton
Park sublot owners join this action. The Club's reliance on Congress Lake Club v. Witte, 5th
Dist. No. 2005CA0037, 2006-0hio-59, 2006 Ohio App. LEXIS 34, is misplaced. The Witte
court found that plaintiff’s son—to whom plaintiff had transferred the property at issue—was a
necessary party because by finding that the defendant was entitled to possession of the property,
the trial court divested the plaintiff’s son of property in which he claimed an interest without
giving him a chance to protect his interest. Here, there is no concern that other Clifton Park
sublot owners' right to use Clifton Beach (or any right of the Clifton Park Trustees under the
Clifton Park Trust) will be divested by the declaratory relief sought. Their exclusive right to use
Clifton Beach can only be confirmed by a declaratory judgment in Plaintiffs’ favor.
Similarly, Ceria v. Hi!roc Condominium Unitowners Assn., 8th Dist. No. 83309, 2004-
Ohio-1254, 2004 Ohio App. LEXIS 1114, is easily distinguishable. There, the court found that
unit owners that were not parties to the action could be adversely affected by the declaratory
judgment sought by the plaintiffs who were also unit owners. Id. at 9, 12. Because the court
determined that those unit owners' interests did not align with the plaintiffs and thus would not
be protected, the court held those unit owners should be joined. Id. Here, on the other hand, all
Clifton Park sublot owners' rights are protected. Under no scenario can the Clifton Park
704, 711 (D. Colo. 1966) (holding that absent beneficiaries were not necessary parties to a suit in which plaintiff beneficiaries sought relief that would "increase the corpus of the trust," because "the absent beneficiaries stand to gain if the named plaintiffs succeed"); Sredniawa v.Sredniawa, 8th Dist. No. 86607, 2006-0hio-1597, 2006 Ohio App. LEXIS 1499 (trust beneficiaries were not necessary parties to a declaratory judgment action brought by the beneficiaries' mother, as a co-trustee, against the beneficiaries' father, who was the other co trustee); Godfrey v. Kamin, 194 F.R.D. 627 (N.D. 1112000) (contingent trust beneficiaries were not required to join income beneficiary when seeking relief in connection with multiple allegations of wrongdoing which included fraudulent misrepresentations made by trustees to plaintiffs).
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Trustees' and other Clifton Park sublet owners' rights under the Clifton Park Trust be adversely
affected by the declaratory relief Plaintiffs request. 10 Dismissal is not warranted under Civ.R.
12(B)(7), Civ.R. 19, orR.C. 2721.12.11
Finally, the Club argues that there will be nothing "conclusive" about the resolution of
this case. Defendant's Mtn. at p. 14. Contrary to the Club's contention, resolution of the
controversy between Plaintiffs and the Club will conclusively establish the rights to use Clifton
Beach that are granted under the Clifton Park Trust, and to whom those rights are granted.
Plaintiffs seek a declaratory judgment from the Court declaring that Club members have no legal
right to use Clifton Beach, because that right was granted exclusively to beneficiaries under the
Clifton Park Trust. Such a declaration, or any declaration clarifying the language of the Clifton
Park Trust with respect to the right to use Clifton Beach, will be conclusive and resolve this case.
IV. CONCLUSION
For the foregoing reasons, this Court should deny the Club's Motion to Dismiss and
allow this case to be adjudicated on the merits.
10 Indeed, in Bates v. Rupert, Clifton Park Trustee, et al., Cuyahoga C.P. No. CV-84-078814 (Feb. 4, 1985), where a resident of Clifton Park sued the Clifton Park Trustees, none of the resident owners of the Clifton Park Allotment or Club officers or members were added as interested and necessary parties and the case proceeded to summary judgment. See also Beach Cliff Bd. of Trustees v. John Ferchil, 8th Dist. Nos. CA-02-81327, CA-02-81326 (May 20, 2002) (large number of resident beneficiaries of the trust at issue were not added to the action as interested and necessary parties).11 If the Court determines that there are indispensable parties other than Plaintiffs and the Club, the appropriate remedy is to order those parties be joined to this action. See fn. 2 supra.
14994064.1
Denni . Rose (0039416) [email protected] Dipali Parikh (0082805) [email protected] LOESER & PARKS LLP200 Public Square, Suite 2800Cleveland, Ohio 44114-2301Phone: (216) 621-0150Fax: (216) 241-2824
Attorneys for Plaintiffs
14994064.1
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
A copy of the foregoing Plaintiffs' Brief in Opposition to Defendant's Motion to Dismiss
was served via electronic mail and regular U.S. Mail on September 14, 2012, upon the following:
Thomas W. [email protected] L. Racey [email protected] Tucker Ellis LLP925 Euclid Ave., Suite 1150Cleveland, Ohio 44115-1414
Joseph P. Gibbons [email protected], Smeltz, Ranney & LaFond PLL1111 Superior Ave., Suite 1000Cleveland, Ohio 44114-2568
Attorneys for Defendant